1. Field of the invention.
This invention relates to an adjustable sandal and more particularly to such a sandal having adjustable toe and heel straps which can be used to secure the sandal to the wearer's foot.
2. Description of the related art.
Sandals have been designed which are suitable for hiking and running, such sandals generally having separate front straps and ankle straps to insure that the sandal does not inadvertently slip off the user's foot. A number of these prior art sandals have integrated front and ankle straps wherein the relative lengths of the front and ankle strap portions can be adjusted in length relative to each other to securely hold the sandal to the wearer's foot. Such sandals are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,000 issued Sep. 26, 1989 to York and U.S. Pat. No. 4,793,075 issued Dec. 27, 1988 to Thatcher. The design of the York patent while suitable for ordinary walking does not provide as secure a binding for the portion of the foot immediately to the rear of the toes, as to be desired for hiking. Further, no separate adjustments for the toe and heel regions are afforded in this design. Thatcher, while providing separate toe and heel adjustments achieves this end result in the toe region by means of a ring member through which the toe and lateral side straps of the sandal are adjustably fitted. This ring member is of a hard rigid material which can, on occasion, irritate the sides of the user's foot. This type of member is also subject to breakage under the heavy wear encountered in strenuous hiking situations.